Celebrating the shortest day of the year across East Asia.
Dongzhi is a traditional festival that is celebrated across East Asia. The word “Dongzhi” means “winter’s extreme ,” as it takes place on the shortest day (and longest night) of the year. Its date usually falls between December 21 and 23. The festival’s origins go back over 2,000 years to China’s Han Dynasty.
The ancient Chinese believed in the conceptof yin and yang. These are two oppositeforces in the universe that are actually connected. Their connection creates harmonyin the natural world. Since Dongzhi is the shortest day of the year, it is a connecting point in the changing of seasons. The Chinese believed that before Dongzhi, positive energy would flow out. But after it, positive energy would begin flowing back in.
The Chinese also believed that yin , or femaleenergy, reached its peak on Dongzhi. Therefore, they usually ate foods that were high in yang, or maleenergy. In Northern China, the weather was normallyvery cold during Dongzhi, so they would eat hot foods, while in Southern China, they enjoyed different kinds of foods.
